Al Harrington: “I’ve been wanting to be traded since the end of last season”

Now that the cat’s out of the bag, Al Harrington is speaking his mind.

The Warriors forward confirmed late Tuesday that he and his agent, Dan Fegan, met earlier with vice president Chris Mullin to reiterate Harrington’s unhappiness with coach Don Nelson and his desire to be moved.

“If you ask me if I want to be traded, I’ve been wanting to be traded since the end of last season,” Harrington said. “With everything that happened in the summer and coming into training camp, I was hoping things were going to work out between me and Nellie, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

“It is what it is. That’s being all the way honest. That’s putting it out there. Do I think that Al might have to be traded? Do I think it’s going to work with me and Nellie? I don’t think so. That’s how I feel.”

Harrington had never made it a secret that he felt underutilized and often out of position in Nelson’s system, but the forward/center had always done what was asked, and, until now, kept his major grievances in-house.

An emotional Harrington explained Tuesday that he did not want to be a distraction to the team and had hoped his rocky relationship with Nelson would be different this year. But some preseason maneuvering by Nelson — who is about to re-sign for another two seasons — has Harrington doubting the outcome.

He played just 17 minutes in the Warriors’ exhibition finale, a game Nelson said he’d coach as if it were the regular season. Just prior to that, Nelson also announced that he’d made Harrington a team captain, a title he’d given Stephen Jackson and Andris Biedrins at the start of training camp.

It’s a move Harrington questions the sincerity and timing of, given its ability to reflect poorly on him if a trade request became public.

Now that it is, resolving Harrington’s future is just the latest challenge facing the Warriors’ fractured front office. Suspended guard Monta Ellis, who was essentially fined $3 million for his moped accident, is expected to file a grievance over Golden State’s handling of his punishment within the week.